Whether you currently have natural stone in your home or you’re thinking about purchasing a home with natural stone furnishings, you’ve probably heard a few myths about the care and costs of maintaining natural stone surfaces. As a restoration company that provides everything from stone polishing to granite crack repairs, we’ve heard it all. We’ll debunk a few of the most common myths we’ve heard in today’s post, and we’ll continue to revisit this topic in an ongoing series.

Concrete & Marble Transformerz is a Top Rated Local® restoration company serving Los Angeles County, Orange County, Long Beach, and Redondo Beach, and we’d love to help you with your next natural stone restoration project! Contact us today at 562-206-2729 for more information!

Myth #1: Natural Stone Surfaces Require Expensive Maintenance

Granite, marble, limestone, and travertine surfaces are found in a variety of Los Angeles homes and businesses, and each of these natural stone surfaces is slightly different in its maintenance demands. Perhaps you’ve furnished your home with elegant marble floors in a high-traffic area, or maybe your business’ lobby is furnished with an older travertine surface. While stone surfaces in high-traffic areas such as lobbies, hallways, and kitchens will require sealing and cleaning more frequently than less used areas, the annual upkeep costs of these surfaces is minimal.

Regardless of whether your business is furnished with natural stone surfaces, you’ll already be hiring a floor polisher to keep your floors looking pristine for your employees and customers. Natural stone floors such as concrete and marble require special chemicals when they’re being polished, but the cost will not be significantly higher than the cost required to polish tile or to clean your carpet. If you have stone countertops in your home, you can expect to invest in semi-annual stone sealing; however, if you can afford a home furnished with stone countertops, the costs of stone polish will not be a significant burden on your wallet. You should also keep in mind that it’s always cheaper to pay for stone sealing and polishing than it is to pay for stone restoration!

Myth #2: Stone Countertops Can Withstand Heat

You may have heard that you can place items from the oven or the stovetop directly onto your stone countertops. While it’s true that marble and granite countertops are incredibly sturdy, they’re not invulnerable. Heat shock is a phenomenon that occurs when a hot object is placed on top of a cool surface, and stone countertops can be damaged by heat shock if you run your air conditioner throughout the year. Most Los Angeles residents use their air conditioners during the summer, and setting a hot object from your oven on your cool countertops can leave them with heat rings and noticeable signs of damage, including discoloration. Even if you’ve set hot objects on your stone countertops in the past without any issues, we recommend investing in cookware designed to accommodate high-temperature items. As we noted in the previous section, it’s better to play it safe when it comes to your stone countertops. (It’s also much cheaper!)

Myth #3: Stone Sealer Lasts as Long as the Warranty

While this claim isn’t obviously false, it’s not true in a variety of cases. The short answer is, “it depends.” Some stone sealers will come with a warranty that lasts for 10 years, but your specific circumstances will dictate the length of time you can go between sealing your stone surfaces. Many warranties don’t cover substances such as ammonia, wine, and citrus juice spills, and these are some of the most common causes of damage to natural stone surfaces! If you have natural stone in a high-traffic area or you have children that frequently spill drinks and food on your stone countertops, you should probably be investing in stone sealing more frequently. If you’re unsure about your specific needs, contact a member of Concrete & Marble Restoration for help! We’d be happy to help you come up with an individualized stone sealing plan.

Myth #4: Concrete Won’t Look Good in My Home or Business

While we don’t do concrete installations, we frequently hear that concrete surfaces have deterred both home and business owners from purchasing certain properties. This myth is completely understandable, as none of us would want a property furnished with the rough concrete that constitutes Los Angeles’ sidewalks and driveways. However, the concrete used in residences and businesses can be polished and stained for a beautiful, glossy effect, and it can also be matched to virtually any decorating style.

If you’re considering purchasing a property furnished with indoor concrete, don’t let that fact deter you from making the purchase! Concrete & Marble Transformerz offers a variety of concrete services, including concrete polishing and staining. We can help you turn your indoor or outdoor concrete into a work of art. All you have to do is contact us for more information!

We hope that this article has clarified some of the myths you may have heard about natural stone care and maintenance. We’ll continue to revisit this topic in future posts, so stay tuned for even more natural stone myth busting from Concrete & Marble Transformerz! The experts at Concrete & Marble Transformerz can help you with anything from floor cleaning to stone polishing, and we would love to help you maintain the natural stone in your home or business. Contact our stone restoration experts at 562-206-2729 or get in touch with us through our website for more information!

Did you know that marble, limestone, travertine, onyx and other calcite based stones are very sensitive to acids? Be sure to avoid acid based cleaning products and spills of acidic liquids. If you do have a spill, try to wipe it up as soon as possible.

Concrete & Marble Transformerz provides concrete, epoxy, marble and natural stone services for the residential, commercial and industrial industries. We currently serve Long Beach, Redondo Beach and the greater Los Angeles County and Orange County metropolitan areas.